We were all horrified at the death of the young man so close to this building. While this sort of thing is happening all the time, the fact that it happened so close to this building has jolted us. I congratulate Senator Gerard P. Craughwell on the manner in which he appealed to the Leader to have a debate on the matter. Based on what the Leader said, the Senator went to him yesterday and gave him time, rather than raising it today and calling for a Minister to appear today. I do not support Senator Marc MacSharry's view on this occasion; I support Senator Gerard P. Craughwell's. I thank the Leader for responding as well as he did having been given notice. It is something I have learnt. It is great to have a newcomer come in and show us how to do things. Giving notice has given the Leader the opportunity to do something about it.

Senator John Kelly spoke about the report on the ambulance service. Yesterday morning, the same organisation, HIQA, issued a report on defibrillators. Senators will remember we had a very good debate on defibrillators in which the Minister said he wanted to give some thought to the issue. The Bill we discussed in the House would require all premises with more than 100 people going through each day to have a defibrillator. HIQA's health technology assessment report accepts most of what has been proposed. However, it claims it is too expensive to do it in every building. I accept that is so and it may have to find a way. When considering the cost of defibrillators, we must remember they are life saving. We are talking about homeless people dying on the streets. People who need defibrillators are also dying if we do not manage to get more of them in. The proposal is that businesses should get grants from the Government to support not just buying a defibrillator, which costs about €1,000, but also training people to use it. I believe that is something that could be done. There are things the Government could do to make it less expensive. Why do we pay VAT on defibrillators? Why do we pay VAT on children's car seats? There are some things that do not make sense. I can understand the Government claiming that it not in its hands but in the hands of the European Union. Let us ensure we argue the case that defibrillators should be free of VAT. Defibrillators should qualify for a grant to encourage considerably more businesses to install them.

Watching the "Six One News" last night, I was absolutely shocked and sickened that the headlines in 2014 should relate to a homeless person who had lost his life tragically adjacent to Leinster House. It made everybody here sit up. It is not that anybody was not aware of the problem. As others have mentioned, this happens in many places. It is perhaps more poignant because it happened outside the gates of power where we sit and debate issues. It is welcome that the Leader has agreed to a debate on the issue tomorrow. I hope we will not just have a talk tomorrow and instead come up with something to address the problem urgently.

I extend my sympathy to the family and friends of Jonathan Corrie. This matter has been raised in several occasions in the House and by people driving or walking past Leinster House. It has been noted that individuals who sleep rough nearby are losing their lives as a result of a lack of suitable homes for them.

I was sickened by headlines on the psychological and physical abuse visited on the most vulnerable people in society. I refer to events at Áras Attracta and the news which emerged last night on the abuse visited on residents there. Those who reside in it are adults with intellectual disabilities. It is deeply disturbing to hear about some of the allegations being made against members of staff at the facility in question. These allegations relate to staff shouting at, slapping, force feeding and kicking residents. Families turn to the providers of residential services when their adult children can no longer care for themselves. I thank the RTE investigations unit for revealing what is happening at Áras Attracta. It is dreadfully sad, however, that it was necessary for a journalist to go undercover at the centre, particularly when an investigation had already been carried out into an incident which had taken place in 2012. I urge the Leader to make time available as soon as possible for a debate on this matter and the overall care afforded to people with intellectual disabilities in residential settings throughout the country. The families of those with intellectual disabilities deserve to know, with absolute certainty, that their loved ones live in a caring and safe environment in which they are treated with the respect and dignity they deserve.

I join Government and Opposition Senators in expressing sadness and shock at the death of Jonathan Corrie at a spot very close to Leinster House. It is tragically symbolic that Mr. Corrie died only a few yards away from the national Parliament. Only last week the Government announced its housing policy and the investment plan relating thereto. However, that announcement did not include anything on emergency measures designed to deal with the homelessness crisis. I commend the Leader for arranging a debate on the issue of homelessness tomorrow. I also commend Senator Gerard P. Craughwell for working with the Leader to facilitate the holding of that debate.

I agree with Senator Mary Moran that we do not want any more talking about this issue. What we want from the relevant Minister is a clear plan of action regarding the investment that is going to be made. Last week I attended a briefing given by representatives from the Simon Community who referred again - in very dramatic terms - to the homelessness crisis. They also referred to many issues relating to housing, including the rent caps and limits which are causing major difficulties for many families and which are forcing people to enter substandard accommodation. We need to discuss a range of issues in the context of this matter. One cannot walk from this building to Grafton Street in the evenings without passing six or seven people who are homeless. That is the reality. I accept that this is a complex issue and that there is no magical solution to it, particularly because some people who are homeless have mental health difficulties or addiction problems. I am very conscious that we need to be mindful of the fact that there are myriad issues which arise in the context of homelessness. I welcome the holding of tomorrow evening's debate, in which I hope to participate.

My second point relates to the strike in which post-primary school teachers are engaging today. This matter was raised in an eloquent manner by Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell, who referred to the external examination issue. I agree with the points the Senator made. In general, teachers are being asked to perform miracles in under-resourced schools. Now they are being asked to assist in the implementation of reforms without being given access to proper training or adequate resources. The request they are making is reasonable. I drove to Leinster House this morning via St. Stephen's Green and saw teachers who are on strike today walking up and down on one of the footpaths. That is not where teachers want to be. They want to be in the classroom, rather than out on strike. In that context, I support the call for the Minister for Education and Skills to come before the House to discuss this issue with us.

I again take the opportunity to commend the Leader for ensuring the Minister of State with responsibility for housing will come before the Seanad tomorrow to discuss the issue of homelessness.

I echo the sentiments expressed by Senators across the House on the issue of homelessness. I recall, during my first Christmas as a Member of the Seanad, raising the fact that a homeless individual was sleeping rough across the road from the Leinster House complex. People who could have made a difference were continually entering and leaving Leinster House at the time, but that gentleman was still sleeping rough. Thankfully, it was not him who passed away.

I join colleagues in extending my sympathy to the family of Mr. Corrie. What happened to him was shocking.

On a more positive note, I welcome the announcement by Michael O'Leary that Ryanair will bring additional passengers through Shannon Airport in 2015. I note Mr. O'Leary's comments that it was as a direct result of the Minister for Finance, Deputy Michael Noonan, abolishing the travel tax that Ryanair was in a position to bring 1.6 million additional passengers into the country. That has had a significant impact on the tourism sector.

I agree with the points made by Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell and others about external examination of students. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan, is very capable and competent. This issue must be negotiated, not on the streets but around a table. In order to protect the integrity of any examination process, whether junior certificate, leaving certificate or otherwise, we cannot have teachers assessing their own students. It does not make sense. I call on all parties involved to sit down together in the coming weeks to work this out. There is goodwill on all sides, including among teachers. They, too, want to get this right. We can be thankful that there usually is an upside to all such disputes. In this case, the strike allows me to welcome Alison Cotter to the Visitors Gallery, a young lady who is gaining work experience in my office and is on a day off today. I hope she enjoys herself.

I am sure the young lady to whom the Senator referred is suitably embarrassed. She is, of course, very welcome.

Senator Martin Conway is giving her great training.

Her name will be in the Official Report for posterity.

I second the amendment put forward by my colleague, Senator Marc MacSharry. Notwithstanding Senator Gerard P. Craughwell's initiative and the Leader's opening comments, this is the day to discuss this matter. It might well be part of the problem that we keep putting off that discussion. According to the Order Paper, our business today includes "Statements on Government Geoscience Initiatives from Industry Support to Education". I might need somebody to translate that for me because I have no understanding at all of what it is about. However, I do have an understanding of the homelessness problem. Senator Martin Conway referred to earlier remarks he had made in this House on this issue. I have not checked the Official Report, but I do recall, going back more than ten years ago, standing up on the other side of this Chamber and raising the issue of homelessness in the lead-up to Christmas. I join all colleagues in sympathising with the family of Jonathan Corrie. It is somewhat ironic that the place where he tragically passed away is where all of the national and international press locate when filming reports from Leinster House. I wonder will any of them pause in the future to recall that the spot on which they stand is where somebody passed away within earshot and sight of the Houses of the Oireachtas.

A report in The Irish Times today is relevant to our calls for an urgent debate on homelessness. The report outlines how a social housing project in Gardiner Street which would house several dozen people who are badly in need of housing is now complete. Nobody has been accommodated, however, because the Christian charity which owns the property has put the rent so high that the matter remains under negotiation with Dublin City Council. Will the Leader use any influence he can bring to bear on the Minister of State with responsibility for housing, Deputy Paudie Coffey, to resolve this issue? This particular housing complex is in the constituency of the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, who was asked about it yesterday. It is a tragic irony that in the aftermath of Mr. Corrie's death yesterday, a housing project located not all that far from where he died is ready and waiting to accommodate people in desperate need of housing but a Christian charity has put the rent so high that it is not acceptable to Dublin City Council. That is a scandal. Those who call themselves Christians should be held to account for their actions in this matter.

I join colleagues in sympathising with the Corrie family. As my intention today was to call for a debate on housing, I welcome the Leader's undertaking in that regard.

There should not be a reason 168 people would sleep rough in a city of 1.2 million people. More than seven months ago €35 million was allocated to the four local authorities in Dublin, in particular, to ensure people were taken off the streets. The Archbishop of Dublin has called for a forum to examine the issue and the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government said he would set up an emergency forum. It is an increasing problem and it cannot only be looked at in the long term. There are many reasons for homelessness but there is no excuse for anybody being homeless. We should try to prevent them becoming homeless in the first instance. I would like the forum to concentrate on this issue, as well as getting people off the street to ensure nobody is on the street this Christmas. During the Celtic tiger era, 2,366 adults were homeless in 2008. That was at a time loads of money was sloshing around the country. Reference was made to the allocation of €2.1 billion to tackle homelessness, but this is not only about money. There are other problems which I hope we will flesh out. Like Senator Hildegarde Naughton, I would like steps to be taken to outline what will be done. The provision of €35 million will not solve the problem.

I compliment a group of architects who over the weekend designed a house out of a container. It won an award and is on display in the Irish Museum of Modern Art. It will be donated to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. It is a beautiful, modern, state-of-the-art house which is powered by solar energy. It was built in three days with materials provided by 66 companies. This shows that where there is a will, there is a way.

The Senator is way over time.